Cited by 165Posttraumatic Stress Disorder ResearchNeural and Behavioral Psychology StudiesNeurotransmitter Receptor Influence on Behavior

Functional neuroimaging of reward circuitry responsivity to monetary gains and losses in posttraumatic stress disorder

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Elman, Igor, Lowen, Steven, Frederick, Blaise B., Chi, Won, Becerra, Lino, Pitman, Roger K.·2009·Biological Psychiatry

Abstract

Background Clinical impressions and preclinical work suggest that posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) might be associated with dysfunctional reward processing. To pursue this issue, we administered a validated passive-viewing monetary reward task during functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to subjects with chronic PTSD and to mentally healthy individuals.Methods The protocol evaluated fMRI signal changes that anticipated or accompanied monetary gains and losses under varying conditions of controlled expectation. The "expectancy phase" entailed presentation of a promising, unpromising, or intermediate Wheel of Fortune-type spinner, whereas the "outcome phase" was defined by the arrow landing on one of three sectors of that spinner, thereby determining the subjects' gain or loss for that trial.Results Neuroimaging data from 20 PTSD and 26 healthy subjects withstood quality control procedures and were included. In voxelwise and anatomically defined region-of-interest analyses, when gains were contrasted to losses, between-group comparison revealed smaller bilateral striatal activations in the PTSD subjects. In the PTSD group, less striatal activation to gains versus losses was associated with more self-reported motivational and social deficits.Conclusions The present data support the hypothesis that PTSD is associated with abnormal processing of monetary outcomes and that this alteration might be related to some aspects of emotional numbing.

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Crossref · 10.1016/j.biopsych.2009.06.006

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  • A growing recognition of alterations in reward processing led to a reconceptualization of PTSD as an imbalance between approach (reward-related) and avoidance (fear-related) systems.

    “While early research focused on fear-related processes, a growing recognition of alterations in reward processing (115, 116) led to a reconceptualization of PTSD as an imbalance between approach (reward-related) and avoidance (fear-related) systems (117–119).”

    From A transdiagnostic perspective on social anhedonia (2019) · cites this paper as [115]

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Authors
Elman, I., Lowen, S., Frederick, B. B., Chi, W., Becerra, L., & Pitman, R. K.
Affiliations
Harvard University (US)
Corresponding author
Elman, Igor
Venue
Biological Psychiatry
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2009-12
Volume
66
Issue
12
Pages
1083-1090
ISSN
0006-3223 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W1965978496
Cited by
165
References
77
Citations by year
2026: 2 · 2025: 8 · 2024: 4 · 2023: 12 · 2022: 9 · 2021: 11 · 2020: 18 · 2019: 11 · 2018: 9 · 2017: 10 · 2016: 20 · 2015: 11 · 2014: 7 · 2013: 10 · 2012: 8
FWCI
7.77
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Biological Psychiatry (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
Funders
National Institute on Drug Abuse (K25DA016612, R01DA017959, DA16612, DA 017959)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Research
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Neural and Behavioral Psychology Studies
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience › Neurotransmitter Receptor Influence on Behavior
Keywords
post-traumatic stress disorder, reward processing, monetary gains and losses, striatum, emotional numbing, motivational deficits, social dysfunction, chronic PTSD
MeSH terms
Adult, Analysis of Variance, Brain, Brain Mapping, Female, Humans, Image Processing, Computer-Assisted, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Male, Memory, Middle Aged, Nerve Net, Oxygen, Reward, Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic, Time Factors, Young Adult

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